Cabrera hero as Leones tie LMB South title series

Yucatan Leones shortstop Everth Cabrera came up big

Former San Diego Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera capped a two-run comeback for Yucatan in the bottom half of the ninth inning with a walkoff single that scored Ruben Sosa from second base, handing the Leones a 6-5 win over Quintana Roo Sunday in Game Two of the Mexican League's South Division championship series in Merida.  The victory knotted the Leones-Tigres catfight at one game apiece as 13,147 spectators looked on at Parque Kukulkan.  Cabrera, Sosa and Jesus "Cacao" Valdez each had three hits for the winners while C.J. Retherford belted a pair of homers (one of them a three-run bom) for the Tigres, who won Saturday's opener, 4-1, behind the complete game pitching of Henderson Alvarez.

As Cabrera was performing his heroics in Yucatan, the defending champion Tijuana Toros were delivering a 15-2 beatdown to the Monterrey Sultanes to tie the LMB North title series at one gabe apiece.  Dustin Martin cracked a grand slam in the top of the second off Sultanes starter Felipe Gonzalez to highlight a five-run inning that gave the Toros a lead they would widen as the game went on.  Martin finished the night with six RBIs, Cyle Hankerd contributed a three-run homer to the cause and batting champion Isaac Rodriguez went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and two more driven in for manager Pedro Mere's men.  TJ starter Kyle Lobstein pitched six pressure-free innings, allowing one run on three hits while striking out five batsmen to send 21,909 fans at Estadio Monterrey home disappointed.  Sultanes reliever Gonzalo Ochoa had a nightmarish appearance in the seventh frame, allowing six runs on five hits (including Hankerd's roundtripper) and a walk before being pulled by skipper Roberto Kelly with one out remaining, which Marcos Rivas mercifully recorded.

Yucatan and Quintana Roo both reached the LMB South finals by dispatching Leon and Mexico City, respectively, in five games.  Sebastian Valle's two-run homer gave Leones starter Jose Samayoa (6 innings, 1 run) all the support needed in Yucatan's 5-1 win over the Bravos last Monday in Leon while Jason Bourgeois' single drove in Angel Erro with the game winner in the bottom of the tenth in the Tigres' 6-5 win over the Diablos Rojos the same night in Cancun.  The victory had to be doubly sweet for Tigres owners Fernando and Linda Valenzuela, who've had their own well-chronicled issues with the Red Devils organization over the past year.

Monterrey had to go the extra mile to win their LMB North semifinal series over Monclova in six games.  The Acereros outlasted the Sultanes, 7-6, last Monday at home with the aid of four homers, including a two-run shot coming off the bat of former Yankees outfielder Ruben Rivera, now 44, who hit .385 for the series.  Monterrey wrapped things up two nights later by a 6-3 count over the Steelers as veteran third baseman Agustin Murillo had a big night for the Sultanes, socking a pair of homers (one of them a three-run dinger off Acereros starter Mauricio Lara in the bottom of the fifth.  The 39-year-old Lara had sailed through the first four frames without being scratched for a run before running into trouble in the fifth.  Tijuana had earlier eliminated Aguascalientes in a four-game sweep, giving the Toros a week to rest before opening their series with Monterrey Saturday.

Both division championship series will resume Tuesday night after Monday's travel day, as the LMB South title set shifts to Cancun for Game Three while Tijuana will host Game Three in the LMB North series.


Bravos late with payment, lose SS Amadeo Zazueta to Dos Laredos

Former Leon Bravos shortstop Amadeo Zazueta

Your friendly bank officer issuing a foreclosure notice has nothing on the Monclova Acereros, who waited just one week for a late installment check from the Leon Bravos before reclaiming shortstop Amadeo Zazueta from the Guanajuato team and immediately trading him to the Dos Laredos Tecolotes.

According to Puro Beisbol editor Fernando Ballesteros, the Bravos agreed to a series of payments to Monclova as part of an offseason deal that sent the 32-year-old Culiacan product to Leon after batting .341 for the Steelers last summer, socking 9 homers and driving in 64 runs over 101 regular season contests in 2017.  The trade surprised many Mexican League observers at the time, but the Acereros were committed to Puebla Shuttle passenger Alberto Carreon and LMB veteran Kevin Flores, who spent three years with Yucatan after nine summers with the Quintana Roo Tigres before arriving in Estadio Monclova as a free agent last winter.

Instead, Carreon never got untracked with the Acereros and was shuttled back to sister team Puebla during the Spring 2018 season while Flores ended up playing just 27 of 57 games, batting .320 with 7 RBIs.  And Zazueta?  He became one of the faces of the Leon franchise by batting .356 with 5 homers, 9 steals and a team-high 46 runs scored while adding some adventurous defense in the 6 spot with 10 errors in 55 games.  Despite being one of the Liga's more troubled franchises, the Bravos have managed to reach the playoffs in each of their first two seasons and Zazueta was a key member of this Spring's squad.

However, Zazueta apparently wasn't so important to either the Leon front office or Arturo Blanco, the Potosinos transportation company majordomo and one of the MXL's wealthier owners.  Ballesteros reports that Monclova allowed a week for the Bravos' June installation check to arrive before taking Zazueta back for a nanosecond prior to shipping him off to the Tecos in exchange for pitcher Jose Pina, a useful righty who's gone 45-37 with a 3.52 ERA in six seasons pitching for mostly dreadful teams in Tabasco, Veracruz and Dos Laredos (he was 4-5 with a 4.07 ERA this Spring for the Tecos, who had the worst record in the Liga at 18-39.  The two-time All-Star is a much better pitcher than even his decent stats would indicate and the 6'2" Dominican will finally give Acereros star Josh Lowey a decent complement in the starting rotation.  While their moves were definitely draconian, it's hard to blame Monclova for making them after a second straight first-round playoff exit.  Owner Gerardo Benavides has proven that, if nothing else, he is a hands-on guy who'll make a move at the drop of a hat to improve his hometown team (often at the expense of his Puebla franchise).

But what of the Bravos?  This would be embarrassing to any self-aware ballclub seeking to build credibility among an already-skeptical fan base.  Manager (as of this week) Luis Rivera will likely move Niko Vasquez (.341/10/36) back to his natural position of shortstop with little drop-off in production, but he's left with former Diamondbacks prospect Joe Munoz, a 2014 Midwest League all-star, at third base for Fall 2018 after Munoz played just seven games for Tijuana and Leon in Spring.  The bigger question mark may be regarding what credibility the Bravos have with Leon baseball fans after letting one of their best players leave with nothing in return but even more egg on its face after yet another front office snafu.

One more note worth passing along.  Ballesteros reports that Zazueta may choose to not report to Dos Laredos, one of the few franchises more rudderless than the one he was reclaimed from.  This may all end up in the lap of Liga president Javier Salinas, who certainly doesn't need any more problems in what has been a tough first year for the former Liga MX soccer marketer after replacing Plinio Escalante at the top of the circuit last September.


Managerial firings: Firova out in Monclova, Sandoval canned in Oaxaca

Former Monclova Acereros manager Dan Firova

After showing remarkable restraint throughout the Spring 2018 season, Mexican League owners are using June to make some corrections of their dugout bosses.  Two more managers lost their jobs over the past week after only one midseason firing in Dos Laredos, when the Tecolotes cut Eddie Castro loose last month.  After Tabasco fired skipper Alfonso "Houston" Jimenez in a rather puzzling move, given that Jimenez spun some silk from a sow's ear of a roster (Castro will be Jimenez' replacement n Villahermosa), Oaxaca severed ties with first-year manager Jose Luis "Borrego" Sandoval, a 2008 MVP shortstop for Mexico City during his playing days and a favorite of Diablos/Guerreros owner Alfredo Harp Helu, but the most surprising firing would have to be Dan Firova's reported ouster in Monclova.

 Owner Gerardo Benavides has proven with both the Acereros and Puebla that he has an affinity for hiring managers with Major League Baseball backgrounds such as Wally Backman, who was brought in to Monclova for a disastrous term last despite the former Mets second baseman only having enough prior experience speaking Spanish to order off the menu at Taco Bell.  Hired last December, Firova was seen as a compromise choice of sorts, possessing a less-extensive MLB background but also a Mexican-American who'd both played and managed successfully in the Liga in past years (winning Manager of the Year laurels in 2000 with the Quintana Roo Tigres).  Language and experience in baseball south of the border were not concerns with the former catcher from Texas.

The Acereros finished a disappointing 29-27 in the Spring 2018 regular season, coming in fourth in the LMB North before a first-round playoff exit at the hands of Monterrey.  While fault for failing to meet expectations may lie more with a dissension-ridden clubhouse of transient ballplayers yo-yoing between Monclova and Puebla (star second baseman Manny Rodriguez left the team and was subsequently traded to Quintana Roo) or a pitching staff that allowed more men to reach first base than Stormy Daniels (Josh Lowey notwithstanding), but it's easier to scapegoat a manager and that appears to be what may happening with Firova.  His firing, which has been reported in the Mexican baseball media, had not been officially confirmed by either the Acereros or MXL offices as this story was written and no replacement has been announced.

The firing of Sandoval in Oaxaca was not so surprising.  The 49-year-old Los Mochis native spent 14 seasons between 2000 and 2013 with Mexico City and remained as a coach or manager in the Diablos system before owner Alfredo Harp Helu send him to manage the billionaire's other Liga team in Oaxaca this year.  The Guerreros serve a similar, if not as direct, role to the Diablos that the Kansas City A's used to serve as the New York Yankees' de facto Class AAA affiliate in the American League (which both teams conveniently played in).   Sandoval took Oaxaca's perennial red-headed stepchild team to a last-place finish in the LMB South at 22-35.  While he had more talent than Castro in Dos Laredos or Jimenez in Tabasco had to work with (including such notables as Yuniesky Betancourt, Adan Munoz and Erick Rodriguez), Sandoval's roster reflected the old wartime song, "They're Either Too Young or Too Old," and sank out of contention early.

Sandoval will be replaced at the Guerreros helm by Cuban Jose Alvarez, the former Durango manager who was recently hired to manage Mazatlan this winter in the Mexican Pacific League.  Alvarez won two Gulf Coast League rookieball pennants and one Class A Florida State League title between 1986 and 1990 managing in the Dodgers system.  He spent 2017 as the helmsman in Durango, keeping the newborn Generales at .500 while the team played their first month on the road while their ballpark at home was being readied, but the team ran out of steam the rest of the season as players missed paychecks as the schedule played out (many were traded to save costs) and Durango missed the playoffs.

Toros trash Ohtani as TJ tops Angels, 8-7, in Tempe

If the Mexican League champion Tijuana Toros were supposed to be intimidated while facing the pitches of the most-ballyhooed rookie in Major League Baseball this season, they did a lousy job of looking the part.  The Toros traveled north from their Tucson training camp to Tempe last Friday for a contest against the Los Angeles Angels and their Japanese wunderkind, Shohei Ohtani. 

The 23-year-old Ohtani distinguished himself over five seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball with the Nippon Ham Fighters of the Pacific League by combining a fastball that could top 100 MPH with a power-laden bat to become a three-time All-Star, an All-PL pick as both a pitcher and designated hitter and the PL MVP during the Fighters' 2016 Japan Series championship season.  After batting .286 with 48 homers and 166 RBIs over 403 games for the Hokkaido team while pitching his way to a 42-15 record with a 2.52 ERA, he was posted as a free agent among MLB teams last fall, bidding for the two-way star's services in the majors was very spirited until Ohtani signed with the Angels for $3.27 million over six years (the MLB minimum, as required by rules) plus a $2.35 million bonus.  Scouts have estimated his "real" value over the course of his Halos' contract as closer to $200 million.

Even with all that preceding him last Friday, the Toros treated Ohtani like any veteran-laden team would treat a rookie pitcher: As rudely as possible by racking up six runs on six hits and one walk over three innings off the 6'4" righty en route to an 8-7 win over the Angels.  Granted, the Tijuana win came in a "B" game against the American League West team, but the victory gives the Toros triumphs over teams from MLB, the Korea Baseball Organization and Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League.  Ohtani did strike out five TJ batsmen but he also struggled with his command (plunking Cyle Hankerd twice), his fastball generally topped out at 95 MPH and he gave up a homer to right field by veteran outfielder Dustin Martin in the first inning.  Former MLBer Jorge Cantu, who decided to NOT retire after all, whacked a pair of doubles off Ohtani, eventually scoring on a Juan Apodaca single after his first two-bagger in the second frame and driving in Martin and Hankerd in the third with another double.

Even with the early offensive outbursts, the Toros were eventually tied with the Angels, 7-7, in the top of the ninth when Eudor Garcia singled in Jose Guadalupe Chavez with the eventual game-winning run.  Jesus Pirela held the Angels scoreless in the bottom of the ninth to save the win for Tijuana reliever Danny Gutierrez, who'd pitched the eighth and gave up the two tying runs.  As for Ohtani, whose outing was witnessed by Angels GM Billy Eppler and pitching coach Charles Nagy along with about 300 in the Diablo Stadium stands?  "I feel like I made a lot of good pitches," he said through an interpreter, "and quite a few bad ones."  Catcher Rene Rivera, a MLB veteran and Ohtani's batterymate on Friday, simply said, "It's going to be a process. It's going in a good direction."

The Toros returned to camp in Tucson after the game to continue preparation for their March 22 season opener against Monclova at home in Estadio Gasmart.


Mexican League to stream 140 games live on Facebook in 2018

After a tumultuous first six months on the job, new Mexican League president Javier Salinas has probably been ready for any good news that comes along.  The former Liga MX soccer marketing executive, who was brought to the LMB in no small part for his background of bringing a sports league into more peoples' homes, had some good news for baseball fans last week when he announced that a total of 140 Liga games will be streamed live on Facebook in 2018.

The plan is two carry 132 games split between the LMB's two regular seasons, plus another four games apiece for the Liga's two playoff tournaments.  Isaura Morales, who heads Facebook's alliances with Latin American sports leagues and teams, says, "This collaboration between the LMB and Facebook is part of our commitment to innovate ways in which baseball fans can watch and follow their favorite team from anywhere.  By offering transmissions through Facebook Live, the LMB can reach new audiences in a truly interactive and social way."

For his part, Salinas says, "We're very excited to become pioneers of live sports broadcasts in the country, since our number one priority is to satisfy our fans.  That's why we signed this agreement with Facebook, because we know it's a platform capable of of offering our audiences a unique experience that can be enjoyed from any device.  We're sure our fans will be very happy with this new way to transmit our games."

The first Facebook stream of a Mexican League game is scheduled for the March 22 season opener in Tijuana between the defending champion Toros and their LMB North rival Monclova Acereros.  The LMB's Facebook page can be accessed at www.facebook.com/LigaMexicanadeBeisbol.



Bronswell Patrick chosen as new skipper in Hermosillo

The Hermosillo Naranjeros have picked a former major league pitcher as their new manager, replacing Lorenzo Bundy at the helm.  Bundy completed his 23rd season as a Mexican Pacific League manager last winter, winning his 700th career regular season game (second only to Francisco "Paquin" Estrada's 856 over 27 campaigns) and taking the Orangemen to the MexPac playoffs before losing to Navojoa in the first round.  The Philadelphia native spent five seasons with the Naranjeros after previously managing six other MexPac teams (the only LMP squad he HASN'T managed is Jalisco).  He's won pennants with Navojoa and Mazatlan and Hermosillo and is beginning his first season managing Puebla in the Mexican League after his contract with the Naranjeros did not renew his contract for 2018-19.

Enter Bronswell Patrick.  The 47-year-old Greenville, South Carolina product was a 23rd round draft pick by Oakland in 1988 out of high school, embarking that summer on an 18-year career in pro ball, reaching the majors in 1998 with Milwaukee (for whom he was 4-1 with a 4.69 ERA in 32 appearances (including three starts) and 1999 with San Francisco (1-0, 10.31 in six trips from the bullpen).  Patrick became the first Brewers pitcher to homer in a game since former infielder Skip Lockwood went deep in 1971, two years before the advent of the designated hitter.  He went on to pitch two years in Mexico City, going 11-7 in 2001 and 13-2 in 2003 for the Diablos to book-end a 2002 season spent in Korea, where he was 5-7 for the Samsung Lions.  Patrick wrapped up his playing career in 2006-07 when he pitched six games that winter for Los Mochis, losing both decisions and posting a 5.75 ERA for the Caneros.

Patrick has coached over the past decade in the San Diego system, starting with the Padres' Arizona Rookie League team in 2008.  This summer, he'll serve as pitching coach for the AAA El Paso Chihuahuas of the Pacific Coast League.  While Hermosillo marks his first managerial job, Patrick served as the Naranjeros pitching coach in the past.  He headed the Hermosillo mound staff during their last championship season of 2013-14 and was Bundy's pitching coach for the 2016-17 campaign.  Upon his appointment to his new post in Hermosillo last week, Patrick said, "Over the last couple years while I was a pitching coach with the Naranjeros, I thought about being a manager.  It was something I wanted to do and in recent years that thought's been in my head, so now I'm happy that the Naranjeros and (owner) Enrique Mazon have given me the opportunity to manage the club."

Joining Patrick's coaching staff will be new batting coach Darryl Brinkley, a longtime minor league outfielder who spent time in the Padres, Orioles and Pirates systems but mostly played for teams in independent leagues as well as in Mexico and Korea before retiring after 16 seasons in 2009 after batting .297 with 13 homers in 97 games for Edmonton in the Golden Baseball League.  Brinkley played all or part of eight seasons in the Mexican League, leading the San Luis Tuneros in 2006 with a .355 batting average for manager Dan Firova (now in Monclova).

Tijuana blows out Puebla, 15-3, to clinch first LMB title

Tijuana Toros DH Cyle Hankerd 

Cyle Hankerd belted a pair of homers, driving in four runs, and starting pitcher Miguel Pena allowed one run in 5.2 innings as the Tijuana Toros defeated the Puebla Pericos, 15-3, Sunday afternoon in Puebla to clinch the 2017 Mexican League championship.  In winning Game Five of the Serie del Rey, the Toros bring Tijuana the city's first Liga pennant.  It was the second flag for TJ manager Pedro Mere, who led the Veracruz Rojos del Aguila to the 2012 LMB title. The Pericos were attempting to stay alive in their quest for a second consecutive LMB title despite having had their roster decimated by player transfers to Monclova during the offseason.

Tijuana 15-19-0, PUEBLA 3-9-0 (Tijuana wins Serie del Rey, 4 games to 1)
W-M. Pena (1-0).  L-Roenicke (0-2).  A-6,954.  T-3:13.

The Pericos actually led this one early.  Julio Borbon led off the bottom off by getting hit by a Pena pitch, then moved to second when Pena walked Endy Chavez.  Issmael Salas then grounded into a 5-4-3 double play but Borbon was able to advance to third on the play, then scored when Jesus Arredondo poked a grounder past second into center field.

Puebla held on to their slim 1-0 lead until the top of the third, when Tijuana scored six runs.  Isaac Rodriguez started things off with a one-out single to right, went from first to third on Jose Guadalupe Chavez' single to left and scored the tying run on a Roberto Lopez sacrifice fly to right.  Pericos starter Josh Roenicke then lost his control while trying to record the third out of the inning, walking Corey Brown, Hankerd (2006 MVP of the Class A Northwest League) and Jorge Cantu in succession, the latter forcing Chavez across the plate with the go-ahead tally.  Dustin Martin then cleared the bases by launching a grand slam over the centerfield wall to make it a 6-2 contest.

The Toros posted four more counters on the scoreboard in the fourth to knock Roenicke out of the game and effectively put the contest (and pennant) out of Puebla's reach.  With one out and runners on second and third, Lopez lifted another sacrifice fly to right, this time scoring Alex Liddi from third.  A Brown single plated Rodriguez from third to make it an 8-2 score, sending Roenicke to the showers and bringing in Angel Rodriguez from the bullpen.  The first batter Rodriguez faced, Hankerd, belted his second homer of the Serie del Rey, a two-run shot to right that brought the score to 10-2.  One inning later, Liddi took Henry Garcia deep to left, giving the Toros a nine-run bulge.

Puebla got one run back in the bottom of the seventh when Alberto Carreon greeter TJ middleman Mark Serrano with a leadoff homer over the leftfield wall, but the Toros scored twice in the top of the eighth when Hankerd hit his second homer of the afternoon, a two-run shot to center off Julio Felix that brought in Brown, who'd just doubled off Felix.  The Pericos scored once more in the bottom of the eighth when Cesar Tapia singled in Arredondo, narrowing the gap to 13-3, but Brown put an exclamation point on the Toros' playoff run by slamming a two-run dinger off yet another Pericos reliever, Fabian Williamson, to bring the count to 15-3. Jason Urquidez then came in and ended the game and Mexican league season with a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth, with Salas flying out to Lopez to bring the 2017 schedule to a close.

While Pena's 5.2 innings were decent enough on their own merit (giving up one run on five hits, striking out four and walking three to earn the win), he had plenty of support as the Toros went on to batter six Puebla hurlers for 19 hits, including five homers.  Hankerd finished the day with two homers and four RBIs while Brown was 3-for-5 with a homer, three runs and three ribbies.  Tapia led Puebla with three hits while Arredondo and Ricky Rodriguez each had two safeties.  Roenicke absorbed his second loss in the Serie del Rey after being knocked around for nine runs on eight hits and three walks.

After drawing crowds of 10,000 for every home game in both the LMB South championships and the Serie del Rey, attendance at Estadio Hermanos Serdan dipped to 6,954 on Sunday.  Pericos owner Gerardo Benavides has threatened to move the team, perhaps to Nuevo Laredo or Juarez along the Texas border, one year after Puebla won the Liga pennant over Tijuana in six games.  Benavides then bought his hometown Monclova Acereros last winter and shifted more than twenty members of Puebla's champions to his new club.  The Steelers were a playoff team before the massive influx of Pericos stalwarts and a preseason pick among many to win the flag this year, but fell to Monterrey in the first round of the playoffs.

The Toros win caps quite a year for what has become perhaps the leading organization in the Mexican League. Tijuana home games were perhaps the loop's most-entertaining openings (finishing second to Monterrey in regular season attendance with an average of 10,872), the team sold a number of prospects they'd developed to MLB organizations during the summer and now the "Gateway to Mexico" has its first Mexican League championship team and first organized ball pennant winner since the 1952 Potros, led by Triple Crown winner Pete Hughes (.366/28/131), won the Class C Southwest International League crown.  The Tijuana Potros also won winterball titles in the Mexican Pacific League for 1987-88 and 1990-91.

Toros, Pericos both one win away from Serie del Rey rematch

Tijuana Toros pitcher Alex Sanabia

The Tijuana Toros and Puebla Pericos came away with Tuesday night triumphs in their respective Mexican League division championship series, and both are one win away from punching their tickets to the LMB's Serie del Rey league championship series.  The two teams collided in last year's finals, with Puebla coming away with the pennant.

Alex Sanabia contributed a brilliant pitching performance in Tijuana's 4-1 victory in Monterrey Tuesday, allowing no earned runs on one hit and no walks over seven innings as the Toros edged ahead of the Sultanes in their LMB North final series, 3 games to 2.  In Puebla, both the Pericos and Yucatan Leones broke out the bats to combine for 18 runs and 28 hits as the hosts posted an 11-7 win over the men from Merida to take a 3-games-to-1 advantage in their LMB South title set.  Jesus Arredondo had three hits and three RBIs for the winners.

The Toros and Sultanes will take Wednesday off as a travel day prior to Thursday night's Game Six in Tijuana.  The Pericos and Leones will play Game Five of their series after Monday's rainout in Puebla pushed their set back a day.


Tijuana 4-4-1, MONTERREY 1-1-0
W-Sanabia (2-0).  L-Solano (0-2).  SV-Urquidez (1).  A-21,285.  T-2:33.

Although the boxscore won't reveal it, Tijuana starting pitcher Alex Sanabia literally threw away whatever shutout bid in the bottom of the first inning but pulled himself together to dominate Monterrey over the next six innings to register his second win of the LMB North championship series.  Sultanes leadoff hitter Chris Roberson tapped a grounder back to the mound that Sanabia meant to throw to Toros first baseman Jorge Cantu for the first out of the inning.  Instead, the former Marlins hurler's throw sailed out of Cantu's reach into right field foul territory, allowing the speedy Roberson to advance all the way to third base on the play.  Robo then scored on Ramon Rios' sacrifice fly to give Monterrey an early 1-0 lead.  One out later, Sanabia plunked Jesus Montero to put another runner on, but induced Daniel Mayora into a fielder's choice grounder to Alex Liddi for the final out of a shaky frame.

After that, the righty from San Diego settled down to dominate the Sultanes lineup for the next six innings, allowing only a Zoilo Almonte leadoff single in the bottom of the seventh before being replaced by Juan Sandoval in the eighth.  Sanabia retired 15 Monterrey batters in a row, pitching 1-2-3 innings from the second through the sixth entradas, and threw strikes on 50 of his 73 pitches on the night.  He has now allowed one earned run on six hits over 14 innings in his two victories against the Sultanes after winning last Thursday's opener, 10-1.

Sanabia still had to pitch from behind through three innings before his teammates scored three times in the top of the fourth to give him a lead to work with, with all runs coming in on Dustin Martin's three-run homer off Monterrey starter Javier Solano, who'd allowed a leadoff single to Roberto Lopez and gave up a two-out walk to Cantu before Martin stepped up to the plate.  Martin later made a standout defensive play in the seventh, when he caught a one-out Mayora fly ball to right field and then threw a strike to Cantu at first to double off Almonte for the final out of the frame.

Corey Brown gave Tijuana one more insurance run by belting his second homer of the series in the top of the ninth off Solano to make it a 4-1 game.  Solano pitched in tough luck in an otherwise decent 119-pitch performance, but that gopher ball to Martin in the fourth was the difference-maker.  Toros closer Jason Urquidez then came on to retire the Sultanes in order in the bottom of the ninth to give TJ the first win by a road team in the series, which now shifts back to Tijuana for Thursday's Game Six.  The Toros are now a win away from a second straight shot at the city's first Liga pennant.  A crowd of 21,285 watched the game at Estadio Monterrey to bring the three-day attendance total in Monterrey to over 60,000 aficionados.


PUEBLA 11-16-0, Yucatan 7-12-0
W-Roenicke (2-0).  L-Negrin (0-1).  SV-Heath (2).  A-11,099.  T-3:30.

Unlike Tuesday's Tijuana-Monterrey game, this contest had little to do with pitching as Puebla and Yucatan got together to post batting-practice totals of 18 runs and 28 hits on the night, with the host Pericos prevailing by an 11-7 score.  At least one run was scored by either team in every inning but the second and eighth as defending champion Puebla brought themselves one win away from the Serie del Rey.

Issmael Salas' two-run homer off Yucatan starter Jonathan Castellanos in the bottom of the first gave the Pericos an early lead while serving early notice that this would be a long night for pitchers.  Castellanos then gave up singles to Jesus Arredondo and Cesar Tapia before Leones manager Chico Rodriguez decided he'd seen enough and brought in Yoanner Negrin to stop the bleeding and the 2016 Pitcher of the Year obliged, getting Hector Garanzuay to fly to right for the third out.  Yuniesky Betancourt socked a solo homer in the top of the second against Pericos starter Josh Roenicke to cut the Puebla lead to one, but a (what else?) homer by Arredondo from a Negrin delivery put the home team up, 3-1.

A wild fourth inning in both halves generated a total of eight runs on eight hits for the two combatants. Roenicke staggered through the top of the fourth by allowing three runs after the first five batters accrued hit after hit: Juan Francisco singled, Betancourt doubled, Esteban Quiroz double (scoring Francisco and Betancourt), Ricky Alvarez singled and Sebastian Valle doubled to plate Quiroz.  Roenicke then drilled Juan Aguilar with a pitch before getting the first out of the inning, a bases-loaded Leo Heras sacrifice fly that brought in Quiroz from third to give Yucatan a 5-3 advantage.  Valle was then thrown out at the plate on Diego Madero's grounder to third before Ronnier Mustelier grounded into an inning-ending fielder's choice at second.  Roenicke managed to stay in for all nine batters, but his insurance rates are likely to go up in the aftermath.

Then it was Puebla's turn to beat a drum on Negrin in the bottom of the fourth, also sending nine men to the plate.  Garanzuay led off with a double, moved to third on a Sergio Perez single and scored when shortstop Madero made a bad throw on an Alberto Carreon grounder.  It looked like Negrin might pitch himself out of trouble when he struck out Julio Borbon and Endy Chavez, but the gates opened again when Salas was hit by a pitch to load the bases, Arredondo walked to bring in Perez with the tying run and Ricky Rodriguez lined a single to left, scoring Carreon and Salas to bring the Pericos back into a 7-5 lead.  At that point, Negrin was replaced by Jesus Barraza, who struck out Tapia to end the carnage.

Puebla then rang up four more runs in the bottom of the fifth to go up 11-5 as the Leones sent three men to the mound.  Barraza lasted long enough to give up singles to Garanzuay and Carreon before Alejandro Soto came in with one out and immediately gave up run-scoring singles to Borbon and Chavez.  Soto was then yanked for Pedro Rodriguez, who bookended the final two outs around an RBI single by Arredondo.  From that point on it seemed a matter of time for the Pericos, although the Leones did fight back with single runs in the seventh (bases-loaded forceout by Alvarez that scored Ivan Araujo) and ninth (RBI single from Aguilar) to come within four counters before time ran out.

Where to begin with highlights from this one?  Let's start with Puebla DH Arredondo, who collected two singles and a homer to drive in three runs and score once.  Garanzuay and Perez, batting seventh and eighth, combined for six hits and three runs (both are batting .500 for the series) and Perez also homered and scored twice for the home team.  Five players had two hits each for Yucatan but Quiroz did the most damage, hitting one double and walking three times to score twice and drive in two more.  Betancourt also scored twice while singling and homering and Araujo (making his first appearance of the series when he batted for Mustelier in the seventh and took over in left) went 2-for-2 with a run.

Roenicke was awarded the win because, well, SOMEONE had to get the W, but it was probably a start he'd rather forget after giving up five runs on seven hits and three walks over 5.1 innings and 110 pitches.  Whew!  Negrin took the loss in his first relief appearance since July 12, 2015, allowing two runs on five hits in three innings.  Deunte Heath got his second save of the series for Puebla but even he let in a run in 1.1 innings of closing work.  It was that kind of night.

Over 11,000 fans turned out for the second night in a row in Estadio Hermanos Serdan, where the Pericos averaged just 3,186 per opening during the regular season, leading owner Gerardo Benavides (who dismantled his 2016 champions by sending 20+ players to his other team in Monclova during the last offseason) to declare his willingness to move the team north for 2018 if fans didn't turn out in the postseason.  The two teams will go at it again in Game Five Wednesday in Puebla as the Pericos try to close out the series with Andres Meza on the mound against Yucatan's James Russell.

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Roenicke, Pericos win in Yucatan; Toros pound Sultanes

Puebla Pericos starting pitcher Josh Roenicke

Josh Roenicke pitched seven strong innings and his teammates posted a three-run eighth inning as the Puebla Pericos went on to defeat the Yucatan Leones, 4-1, in Game One of the Mexican League's South Division championship series Thursday night in front of 12,000 fans at Merida's Parque Kukulkan.

Roenicke, an MLB middleman between 2008 and 2013 prior to becoming an LMB South All-Star as a starter this past June in his first Liga campaign, found himself locked in a duel with Yucatan's 2016 LMB Pitcher of the Year Yoanner Negrin.  The Leones scored once in the bottom of the fifth when Leo Heras sped all the way in from first on Diego Madero's double, but the Pericos knotted the score up in the top of the sixth when Issmael Salas doubled in Alberto Carreon, but it was their three-run eighth that provided the defending champion Pericos their eventual margin of victory.

Jesus Barraza came in from the bullpen to replace Negrin to start the inning and immediately found himself in trouble when first batter Borbon dragged a bunt single down the third base line that Yucatan third sacker Yuniesky Betancourt threw into right field territory, allowing Borbon to advance all the way to third.  After Chavez popped out to Betancourt, Salas doubled to Mustelier in left to score Borbon with the go-ahead run.  After Barraza intentionally walked Jesus Arredondo to set up a force at any base, he was replaced on the mound by closer Ronald Belisario.  The ex-Dodger induced Ricky Rodriguez to ground a 1-3 comebacker to the hill for the second out as both runners moved 90 feet, but 2016 batting champion Cesar Tapia drilled a double to the busy Mustelier in left to score both Salas and Arredondo, putting the Pericos ahead, 4-1.  Puebla closer Deunte Heath came on in the bottom of the eighth and retired the last four Yucatan hitters (three on strikeouts) to end the game and earn the save.

Salas had a 3-for-4 night with two RBIs and one run scored for the Pericos while Madero collected three hits for Yucatan.  Roenicke, son of former MLBer Gary and nephew of ex-Brewers manager Ron (as well as brother-in-law to Rockies outfielder Ian Desmond)  was the winner after giving up one run and scattering seven hits in as many innings for the visitors and Barraza absorbed the loss after giving up three runs on two hits in one-third of an inning.  Negrin looked good over his seven frames, allowing one run on four hits.

The two teams will lock horns in Merida again Friday night for Game Two in their rematch of last year's LMB South division chamnpionship series.  Josh Outman will get the start for Puebla while James Russell will open for Yucatan.

Puebla 4-7-0, YUCATAN 1-8-1
W-Roenicke (1-0).  L-Barraza (0-1).  SV-Heath (1).  A-12,000.  T-2:55.
_________________________________________________________________________________________

The Tijuana Toros sent 13 batters to the plate in a seven-run seventh innings en route to a 10-1 blowout win over visiting Monterrey in Game One of their LMB North championship series Thursday night.  An Estadio Gasmart crowd of 13,685 watched the Toros earn a leg up in their rematch from 2016 with the Sultanes.

That series concluded with loud complaints from Monterrey owner Jose Maiz about the Toros' large number of Mexican-American players (who are exempt from the Liga's roster limit of six foreigners), leading to last winter's split among owners over the issue that required the intervention of Minor League Baseball president Pat O'Connor to save the 2017 season.  Maiz, who was feted at the Little League World Series this week as a member of the 1957 LLWS champions from Monterrey, fanned the flames Tuesday with a comment calling the Tijuana team the "PochoToros."  The term pocho is an equivalent to words like sellout, traitor or even Uncle Tom among Mexicans, and Maiz' incorporation of it (which was widely reported across the country) has generally been panned by baseball columnists south of the border, especially since O'Connor ruled that there would be no limit to Mexican-American players on LMB rosters.

The Toros broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning off Sultanes starter Javier Solano.  Cyle Hankerd followed Corey Brown's leadoff single with a two-run homer to left field to put TJ up, 2-0.  Hankerd had been drilled by Monterrey closer Wirfin Obispo in an August 4 game, putting him out of the lineup for the final ten games of the regular season and doing nothing to relieve tensions between the two teams in what has become the most intense rivalry in the Liga.  Dustin Martin added an RBI double later in the frame to put the Toros three ahead.

Monterrey got on the board in the top of the fifth on back-to-back doubles by Luis Flores and Chris Roberson, but the Toros put the game away two innings later.  In that entrada, Alex Liddi led the procession off with a line-drive single to left in an ugly frame that ended with seven Tijuana runs off a total of six singles, one Jorge Cantu double, two walks, two hit batsmen and three wild pitches (two by reliever Isaac Jimenez to Cantu prior to the latter's two-bagger).  Liddi also singled his second time up to become the eighth consecutive Toros hitter to reach base.

San Diego native Alex Sanabia pitched seven innings of five-hit, one-run baseball for Tijuana to earn the win while Solano allowed nine hits and five earned runs to take the loss for Monterrey. Martin (Corpus Christi, Texas) had three hits for the winners while Roberto Lopez (San Diego), Cantu (McAllen, Texas), Liddi (San Remo, Italy) and Hankerd (Covina, California) each had two hits as the Toros finished the night with 16 hits.  Luis Juarez (a proud son of Culiacan, Sonora) had two singles for the Sultanes while Roberson (Oakland) and Flores (San Diego) contributed their doubles.  There were no reported comments from Maiz on the ethnic makeup of the two lineups after the rout, but this was only Game One.

Game Two is scheduled for Friday night in Tijuana.  Dominican Angel Castro gets the start for Monterrey while Horacio Ramirez (Carson, California) earns the nod for the Toros.

TIJUANA 10-16-0, Monterrey 1-5-0
W-Sanabia (1-0).  L-Solano (0-1).  A-13,685.  T-3:02.

NOTE: BBM will be in Tucson along with four Mexican Pacific League clubs and a Cincinnati Reds select team for the seventh annual Mexican Baseball Fiesta from October 5 to October 8 at Kino Stadium.  More later.

Toros eliminate Aguascalientes; division championships next

Tijuana outfielder Dustin Martin

Dustin Martin singled in Chris Valencia with the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth inning and closer Jason Urquidez held Aguascalientes scoreless in the ninth, striking out the final two Rieleros batsmen, as the Tijuana Toros scored a 4-3 comeback win over the Railroaders Sunday night in front of 17,608 fans in the border city.

The victory gives the Toros a 4-games-to-2 first round playoff series win over Aguascalientes and a ticket to the Mexican League North Division championship series against Monterrey.  Yucatan and defending champs Puebla will square off in the LMB South championship set.  Both series will open Thursday night.

TIJUANA 4-10-1, Aguascalientes 3-8-1
W-Sandoval (1-0).  L-Merritt (0-1).  Sv-Urquidez (3).  A-17,608.  T-3:02.

Aguascalientes took an early 2-0 lead by scoring single runs in the first and second innings against Toros starter Miguel Pena.  Richy Pedroza lined a one-out single to right field in the opening frame and came all the in from first one out later when longtime vet (and former Rieleros player-manager) Saul Soto rapped a double to left to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage.  In the second, Eliezer Ortiz drew a two-out walk off Pena but, with Dave Sappelt batting, appeared to be picked off for the third out.  However, a throwing error by TJ first baseman Jorge Cantu during the ensuing pickle allowed Ortiz to take second.  Sappelt then punched a single through the left side of the infield to bring Ortiz home.

The Toros tied the game at 2-2 by posting single runs of their own in the third and fourth innings.  With Dustin Martin occupying first base, Isaac Rodriguez tapped a double-play grounder to Rieleros starter Yohan Flande, who threw to Pedroza covering second for the first out but Pedroza's relay to Jesse Castillo was off the mark and allowed Rodriguez to scamper to second.  Jose Guadalupe Chavez, who had a great series at the plate, then drove Rodriguez with a single up the middle.  Chavez went 14-of-24 (.583) at the plate over the six-game set, scoring six runs and driving in seven more.  Tijuana's second run came a bit more directly when Corey Brown lofted a solo homer to right off Flande to even the score.

Aguascalientes regained the lead in the sixth on a Carlos Rodriguez solo homer after Pena had opened the inning by whiffing Jose Vargas and Cristhian Presichi, but the contest was knotted back up at 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh when Alex Liddi lined a leadoff homer to left off Rieleros reliever Roy Merritt, a Southern University alum who'd pitched 6.1 solid innings against the Toros in a start four nights earlier.  Liddi displayed a couple of shimmy-shake moves while circling the bases that won't bring him an invite to "Dancing With the Stars" but delighted the Tijuana fans regardless.  Merritt was pulled just before Liddi's next plate appearance in the eighth, but the Texan hurler may file Liddi's trip around the bags in his memory banks for next season.

The game-winning run came in the bottom of the eighth when Cyle Hankerd led off the inning by drilling a double to center.  Valencia was brought in as a pinch-runner to replace Hankerd while Alfredo Amezaga was sent up to the plate as a pinch-hitter for former Florida Marlins teammate Cantu and laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Valencia to third.  Merritt then intentionally walked Juan Apodaca to pitch to Martin, a dangerous hitter but only going 2-for-21 in the series when he strode to the plate.  The strategy failed, as Martin lined a single to left, scoring Valencia from third to put the Toros up by a 4-3 count.  Urquidez then came on in the ninth and after allowing a single by pinch-hitter Edson Garcia, got both Sappelt and Pedroza looking to end the game and series, collecting his third save in Tijuana's four wins in the process.

Chavez finished with a 3-for-4 night at the plate while Hankerd had two hits for the winners.  Aguascalientes, who'd overachieved all season with a dollar-store roster cobbled together by manager Homar Rojas, got two hits apiece from Pedroza and Julian Castro but the Rieleros were unable to overcome the Brown and Liddi homers as well as their own defensive miscues along the way.  Pena went 5.2 innings on the mound for Tijuana, allowing three runs on seven hits, but the win went to reliever Juan Sandoval, who tossed a scoreless eighth before Martin's heroics made him the pitcher of record.  Merritt took the defeat for Aguascalientes after giving up two runs in 2.1 frames out of the bullpen.  Urquidez earned a save in all three of his appearances for the Toros, allowing only Garcia's single and one walk while striking out eight Rieleros in 3.1 innings of work.

Manager Pedro Mere's Toros will now face the Monterrey Sultanes in a rematch of last season's LMB North championship series.  That set, won by Tijuana, lit a match under Monterrey owner Jose "Pepe" Maiz over the Toros' use of Mexican-American players that became a full-blown schism in the offseason.  With Maiz now in the background after selling half the team to the Grupo Multimedios in February, the level of volatility should be ratcheted down a notch but in the Mexican League, one never knows for sure.  We'll all find out starting Thursday.

Diablos-Guerreros team wins third Academy AA League title; Toros sweep Monterrey, win streak at 16

2017 Liga Academia AA champs Diablos-Guerreros

It took fourteen agonizing innings to do it, but a team of combined prospects from the Mexico City Diablos Rojos and Oaxaca Guerreros topped the Campeche-Quintana Roo squad, 4-3, last week in El Carmen (near Monterrey) to clinch their third consecutive Mexican League Academy Class AA League title and sixth straight crown when the winter Academy Rookie League seasons are factored in. The Diablos-Guerreros had a 55-30 record to top the Academy AA League standings, which included eight teams sharing prospects belonging to two LMB teams each.

Diablos-Guerros pitcher Luis Rodriguez, whose rights belong to Mexico City, was named MVP after going 6-2 with a 1.06 ERA (how did this guy lose TWO games, let alone one?) while striking out 108 batters and walking 22 over 76.1 innings. A Rodriguez moundmate, Juan Carlos Lopez, led the circuit in wins with a perfect 9-0 mark and strikeouts with 110 in 88 frames to go with his 1.62 ERA.  Durango-Veracruz' Jesus Vega was the top batter with an even .400 average, Juan Sanchez of Tigres-Campeche led in homers with 10 and Monterrey-Aguascalientes' Bryan Sosa's 69 RBIs were tops. Remigio Diaz was named Manager of the Year after leading the Monclova-Puebla squad to a 47-40-1 record and a fourth-place finish.

According to Fernando Ballesteros of Puro Beisbol, the Mexican League has operated at least one academy since 1983 as a complex dedicated to housing hundreds of domestic prospects for the purpose of teaching and developing baseball skills, a number of which dot the map in Latin American baseball-playing countries (including ten in Mexico alone).  While the El Carmen complex is the longest-running and most important of the LMB-linked five academies, Ballesteros said in his May 15 Zona de Contacto column that it is also perhaps the most "obsolete" (as stated by one Liga official), adding that instructors there don't feel motivation commensurate with their salaries.

The Tijuana Toros operate an academy of their own from which the team has been able to sell the rights of several prospects to Major League organizations, there's another in the state of Sinaloa that reportedly has the "endorsement" of MLB but lacks an established funding mechanism and faces an uncertain future and similar academies are operated by Gerardo Benavides in Monclova and brothers Juan Jose and Erick Arellano in their hometown of Mazatlan for their Yucatan and Laguna LMB prospects.

Brothers Adrian and Edgar Gonzalez, along with father David, opened the Gonzalez Sports Academy near the California-Mexico border in 2010 and generated controversy by seeking to negotiate contracts with big league teams directly, bypassing the Mexican League (which recently was endorsed by MLB as exclusive rights-holders for Mexican prospects).  That effort landed in a courtroom in 2013 after the Majors ruled that one Gonzales prospect's rights actually belonged to the LMB Diablos Rojos and while Ballesteros' May column referred to that academy as still operational, the GSA website was shut down by a hacker and their Facebook page has had no activity since some photos were updated in early February.


TOROS SWEEP MONTERREY TO STRETCH WIN STREAK TO 16 GAMES

Tijuana Toros outfielder Dustin Martin

Former AAA All-Star Game outfielder (in 2010 for Rochester) Dustin Martin has had a hard time getting untracked in 2017, but he showed why he is still one of the most dangerous batters in a loaded Tijuana lineup by belting a pair of two-run homers to aid the Toros' 7-3 win over visiting Monterrey Thursday night at Estadio Gasmart in the border city.  The triumph handed Tijuana their fifth consecutive series sweep, this one against the Mexican League North Division leaders' closest challengers, while extending their season high win streak to 16 games.

The 33-year-old Martin, a former Mets, Twins and Diamondbacks farmhand who was also a New York-Penn League All-Star in 2006 and Florida State League All-Star in 2007, hit .325 with 19 homers, 33 stolen bases and 88 RBIs for Tijuana last year.  Thus far in 2017, he's batting .254 with 14 homers, 23 steals and 67 ribbies in 96 games.  Thursday night's performance showed that any opposing pitcher who downplays the Sam Houston State product to concentrate on the likes of Corey Brown, Alex Liddi or Cyle Hankerd in the playoffs may pay for their oversight.

Despite Martin's longball heroics, the key blow may have been a bases-clearing double by Roberto Lopez (batting ninth) in the second inning that gave the Toros a 3-0 lead that Martin extended in the sixth with his first two-run blast.  Monterrey narrowed the TJ lead to 5-3 when ageless Rafael Diaz came in from the bullpen in the eighth and allowed three Sultanes runs on four hits before Juan Sandoval was sent to the mound to record the final out of the entrada, but Martin's second bomb in the bottom of the eighth provided the final margin of victory for the home team.

A packed house of 17,980 looked on at Estadio Gasmart (capacity 16,811) Thursday night, bringing total attendance for the three-game set to 49,416.  More important, the potent Toros battered Monterrey's pitching staff, which came into the series with a team ERA of 3.87, for 24 runs on 35 hits over the three games.  Heading into Friday's series opener at Aguascalientes, the 70-28 Toros now lead 63-34 Monterrey by six-and-a-half games in the LMB North standings with 12 games left in the regular season.

Toros sweep Sultanes in Monterrey, take LMB North lead

The Tijuana Toros knew they had an opportunity as difficult as it was enormous when they traveled to Monterrey for a three-game midweek series against the Sultanes.  Manager Pedro Mere's Toros had been looking up at Monterrey in the Mexican League's North Division standings all season, but Tijuana had whittled the Sultanes' lead down to two-and-a-half games by the time the set opened Tuesday.  The series gave the Bulls a chance to at least narrow the gap a bit, but they were facing a Monterrey team that leads the LMB in batting with a .315 average and had won seven games in a row, including road trip sweeps in both Campeche and Tabasco (where they endured lighting problems at Parque Centenario 27 de Febrero, where just 178 fans attended a doubleheader last Thursday).

The Toros not only accepted the challenge in front of them, they won all three games at Estadio Monterrey to pull a half-game ahead of the Sultanes in the standings.  Tijuana is now 54-26 (the best record in the Liga) while Monterrey fell to 53-26.  Monclova has been a few games back in third in the LMB North, but the Acereros have won their last eight games to pull four-and-a-half games out of the lead in what is shaping up to be a dandy division race over the last month of the regular season schedule.

Tijuana opened the series Tuesday with a 4-3 win as Dustin Martin's ninth-inning leadoff solo homer off reliever Thomas Melgarejo provided the difference.  Martin's blast gave TJ a two-run cushion that was enough to withstand a Monterrey rally in the bottom in the frame when closer Jason Urquidez gave up three hits, including an RBI single by Moises Gutierrez, and had runners on the corners with one out before striking out MVP candidate Chris Roberson and getting Ramon Rios to fly out to Corey Brown in center to end the contest with his 16th save.  Martin, who has struggled his way to a .250 batting average this season, went 2-for-3 with a walk and scored twice for Tijuana.  The loss wasted a 4-for-4 night for Sultanes' DH Luis Juarez, last winter's Mexican Pacific League batting champion who's hit .447 over his past ten games to raise his LMB season average to .299.  Toros starter Miguel Pena allowed two runs over six innings to go to 7-2 on the year while Angel Castro let in three scores over six frames for Monterrey to fall to 9-3.

The Toros held off Monterrey again on Wednesday night in a 4-3 win over the Sultanes.  Tijuana outhit the home team by a 13-6 margin, leaving ten runners on base, but the key hit of the night was a dribbler to the mound by Jose Guadalupe Chavez in the top of the sixth that enabled Roberto Lopez to come streaking in from third base to give the visitors a 4-2 lead.  Once again, the Sultanes came back to make it a one-run game in the bottom of the eighth when Zoilo Almonte poked a single into right field with runners at the corners to score Walter Ibarra from third, but Urquidez had a 1-2-3 ninth and struck out the last two batters to preserve the TJ lead for his 17th save.  Chavez singled twice and doubled as the Toros' leadoff batter, scoring once in addition to his run-scoring safety and three other Tijuana batters had two hits apiece.  Ibarra and Leo German each had two of Monterrey's six hits (a German double was the Sultanes' lone extra-base hit) as Tijuana starter Manny Barreda (3-6) allowed one run on two hits over six innings, striking out seven.  Monterrey's Jorge Reyes (1-2) was scuffed for ten hits in five frames in the loss, but only let in two runs.

Tijuana had to go into overtime for Thursday night's 8-4 victory to complete the broom job.  The Toros scored single runs in the second (Oscar Robles doubling in Jorge Cantu) and third (Alfredo Amezaga socked a leadoff homer) as the MLB veterans gave the visitors a 2-0 advantage.  Juarez evened the game with a two-run homer in the fourth off TJ starter Horacio Ramirez, another MLB vet,  and then took a 4-2 led two entradas later when Almonte lofted a two-run bomb off Toros reliever Ricky Ramirez, who'd walked Rios to open the inning.  This time, it was Tijuana's turn to come back, scoring once in the eighth on Brown's leadoff homer (his LMB-leading 19th) and knotting the contest in the ninth when Chris Valencia came in from third when Ibarra bobbled a Robles grounder to short.  After a scoreless tenth inning, the Toros put four runs on the board in the top of the eleventh as Martin lined a two-run single off Marco Carrillo to cap the scoring.  Edwin Quirarte came in from the bullpen to retire the Sultanes in order to end the game and series with another Tijuana win.  Chavez, Brown and Robles all had three hits to key the Toros' 17-hit attack, with Brown scoring twice, while Almonte's homer and single represented two of Monterrey's eight hits.  Pedro Villareal pitched a scoreless ninth and tenth for the Toros to earn the win.  Marco Rivas gave up Tijuana's first two runs in the eleventh to absorb the loss for Monterrey.

One interesting aspect of the series was attendance at the 27,000-seat Estadio Monterrey.  The Sultanes lead all of Minor League Baseball in attendance with a 12,047 average per opening and drew 27,529 over the three-game series with Tijuana (all played in triple-digit temperatures), but only 5,232 turned out for Tuesday's game while 6,858 were on hand Wednesday before 15,439 were in the stands for Thursday's finale.  One Puro Beisbol columnist mentioned earlier this week that the Sultanes have regularly given away tickets this season to put more backsides in the seats, but were not giving out free ducats for the tilts with the Toros.  No word on whether the house was papered for the Thursday night game, but it serves as a cautionary tale for teams in any sport who let people into their games for free and hope to make more money on concessions and merchandise sales: After people get used to attending your games for nothing, you run the risk that they'll eventually believe that's what your games are worth.

The Toros will move on to Monclova Friday for a three-game series with the Acereros while the Sultanes welcome the Mexico City Diablos Rojos for a weekend set in Monterrey.

Barreda, Caneros blank Culiacan, 5-0, in semifinal opener; huge comeback propels Mexicali win

Manny Barreda gave up two singles and struck out ten Culiacan batters over eight innings to lead Los Mochis to a 5-0 shutout at home over the Tomateros Wednesday night in the opener of their Mexican Pacific League semifinal series.  In the other MexPac semi, the Mexicali Aguilas overcame a late 7-2 deficit with a six-run eighth inning in pulling off a come-from-behind 8-7 win at home over Hermosillo.

Game Two for the respective series will be played Thursday night at Los Mochis and Mexicali.


LOS MOCHIS 5-9-0, Culiacan 0-3-1

The Caneros' Manny Barreda gave up singles to Ali Solis in the third inning and Maxwell Leon in the sixth while retiring the side in order five times during his eight-frame stint.  He needed to be sharp early on as Barreda and Culiacan starter Patrick McCoy both tossed nothing but zeros until the bottom of the fourth, when Isaac Rodriguez put Los Mochis on the board by whacking a leadoff double, moving to third on a Lew Ford groundout to first and scoring on Leandro Castro's sacrifice fly to right.

Mochis added to their 1-0 lead with three more in the bottom of the sixth, chasing McCoy in the process.  Saul Soto sliced a single up the middle off Victor Marte to plate both Ford and J.C. Linares and make it a 3-0 score.  Ex-MLB hurler Dennis Reyes relieved Marte, but immediately gave up a single to Yosmany Guerra that brought Castro in from third along with an early exit for Reyes.  Castro then put an exclamation point on the procedings by homering to left center off Hector Navarro in the eighth to conclude the scoring in the Caneros' 5-0 triumph.

Castro ended up going 3-for-3 with two runs, two RBIs and a homer while Soto picked up a pair of hits.  An overflow crowd of 11,110 at Estadio Emilio Ibarra Almada in Los Mochis watched a masterful pitching performance as neither Barreda nor reliever Santiago Gutierrez allowed a Tomateros baserunner to reach second base all night. The Caneros are seeking their first MexPac pennant since 2002-03 while Culiacan copped their last flag two winters ago.


MEXICALI 8-15-1, Hermosillo 7-13-2

Unlike the Los Mochis-Culiacan game, pitching had little to do with this one as the two combatants combined for 15 runs on 28 hits at Mexicali's Estadio B'Air in front of 14,232 spectators.

Jason Bourgeois led off the game with a double for the Naranjeros and later scored from third when Mexicali shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt misplayed O'Koyea Dickson's grounder to put the visitors up early. C.J. Retherford came in on a Agustin Murillo sacrifice fly in the bottom of the second to tie it up, but Jorge Flores' line single to left in the fourth drove in Jose Amador and Tim Torres to put the Orangemen back on top, 3-1.  The Aguilas got a run back in the bottom of the fifth when Chris Roberson scored on Retherford's sacrifice fly to center, but the Naranjeros padded their lead with two more runs in both the seventh and eighth frames (the latter featuring a two-run homer from Dustin Martin) to make it a 7-2 Hermosillo lead with six Eagles outs needed to nail down the win.

Instead, Mexicali roared back with six runs in the bottom of the eighth to take their first lead of the night.  Luis Suarez cracked a three-run homer off Nathanael Santiago to start the scoring binge and Betancourt's two-out single to right brought in Missael German with the go-ahead tally.  The ex-MLB shortstop singled twice in the eighth as eleven batsmen came to the plate for the home team.   It was then left to Aguilas closer Jake Sanchez, who has allowed one earned run all season, to pick up his fourth postseason save.  It took a double-play comebacker to the mound to end the game, but Sanchez got the save in a most improbable Mexicali win.

Seven Mexicali players had two hits each in the Aguilas' 15-hit attack, but Juarez' homer was the only extra-base knock of the game.  Bourgeois and 5'5" shortstop Luis Flores each had three of Hermosillo's 13 safeties.  Edgar Gomez recorded one out in the top of the eighth to get credit for the Mexicali win while Heriberto Ruelas gave up Betancourt's late RBI single to take the loss for the Naranjeros.

MexPac regular season enters final week

One week remains in the Mexican Pacific League regular season with all eight teams still in the hunt for six berths in the LMP's January playoffs.  The schedule will conclude with four three-game series played Wednesday through Friday before the postseason begins next week.

Defending Caribbean Series champion Mazatlan (with a second-half record of 18-11) holds a precarious half-game lead over Los Mochis and Navojoa after losing to Culiacan (12-17) by a 2-1 score Christmas Night with 16,912 in the stands at the Tomateros' Estadio BBVA Bancomer.  Culiacan scored twice in the bottom of the ninth, with Joey Meneses (pictured) punching a walkoff line-drive single to left and driving in Ramiro Peno with the winning run.  Oliver Perez earned the win in relief for the Tomateros, striking out three of the four Venados batsmen he faced in the top of the ninth after eight solid innings from starter Edgar Gonzalez.  After the two-game set ends Monday, the Venados will go home to take on Obregon while the Tomateros travel to Guadalajara to face the Jalisco Charros.

Los Mochis (17-11) will open a two-game set in Hermosillo (12-16) Monday night before wrapping up with three games at home against Navojoa (17-11).  The Mayos were crushed by Jalisco (11-17) at home Sunday, 10-1.  Navojoa starter Salvador Robles was chased with one out in the fifth inning after allowing five Charros runs on seven hits and two walks to fall to 1-4 on the season. Veteran second baseman Jose Rodriguez was Jalisco's biggest bopper, going 3-for-5 with a double, driving in two runs and scoring once.  Jalisco plays two more in Navojoa before welcoming Culiacan to Estadio Charros for their final three games.

In the other Christmas Night tilt, Obregon (11-18) held off a late Mexicali (16-13) rally to defeat the Aguilas, 6-4, before 10,037 onlookers at Nuevo Estadio Yaquis. Obregon starter Fabio Castro left the game in the sixth with a comfortable 6-1 advantage, bur Mexicali touched relievers Kenneth Sigman and Craig Stern for three runs on four hits in the top of the ninth, including a two-run single from pinch-hitter Adan Munoz, before Stern was able to record the final two outs of the game.  Outfielder Dustin Martin, playing his first game of the winter for Obregon, appeared playoff-ready in going 2-for-3 with two ribbies and plating a run himself.  After their short series ends Monday, the Yaquis travel to Mazatlan while the Aguilas head home to host Hermosillo in a three-game set.  The Naranjeros were inactive over the weekend.

Whew!  If that seemed convoluted with all the scheduling redundancies, imagine trying to write it.

Barring a batting meltdown of epic proportions, Mexicali catcher Luis Juarez should win the LMP hitting title.  It's been an unprecedented season for the 5'8" product from Culiacan, whose .368 average is 22 points ahead of second-place Leandro Castro of Los Mochis (.346).  The 26-year-old Juarez, better known for his glove than his bat, has never hit above .303 in either the LMP or the summer Mexican League since his Liga debut in 2009.  Hermosillo veteran flychaser Chris Roberson is third at .332.  Roberson's Naranjeros teammate, infielder Jose Amador, remains stuck at 14 homers after another week without a roundtripper, but that's still enough to lead the LMP in that category.  Second-place C.J. Retherford went deep for Mexicali last Wednesday to raise his total to 11 while Navojoa's Quincy Latimore still has 10.  Amador's 56 RBIs give him a comfortable league lead over Mazatlan's Brian Hernandez, who has 47.

Obregon outfielder Corey Wimberly remains the MexPac leader in stolen bases with 16, one more than Navojoa's Randy Arozarena in a race that may be determined as much by attrition as speed.  Wimberly has played only one game for the Yaquis since December 17 while the Cardinals organization has apparently shut down Arozarena for the winter.  Things don't get any better with another Obregon gardener, Justin Greene, who is tied for third with 12 swipes.  Greene was shelved October 29 after a bunt attempt tipped a pitched ball into his face, and his winterball season apparently ended for good after six comeback games in mid-November.  Former MLB outfielder Eric Young, Jr. of Hermosillo also had 12 steals before playing his last game on November 20, ironically the same date as Greene's final appearance.  Also tied for third is Mazatlan outfielder Jeremias Pineda, who DID play Sunday for the Venados but may want to look both ways before lighting out for second from now on.  Just in case.

Among LMP pitchers, it would be hard to find a hurler with more hard luck than Juan Pablo Oramas of Hermosillo.  The 2009 Mexican League Rookie of the Year, Oramas has led the MexPac in earned-run average most of the current season and still tops the list with a 2.31 mark after 12 starts, but only has a 4-3 record to show for it.  Oramas has not won since a November 29 triumph over Jalisco.  In an interesting side note, Oramas has only started one game on the road since November 5.  Obregon lefty Arturo Lopez is second at 2.36 to go with his 5-1 record while Navojoa's Hector Velazquez has moved up to third on the ERA table at 2.39.

Velazquez, who has the inside track for LMP Pitcher of the Year honors, beat Hermosillo last Thursday to take sole possession of the wins race in raising his record to 8-3 (one more than last winter's POY, Javier Solano, who is 7-4 for Mexicali) and his 81 strikeouts in 79 innings is best in the MexPac.  Jalisco's Tyler Alexander is second with 72 Ks.  Mexicali closer Jake Sanchez earned two more saves last week to bring his winter total to 18, six more than Mazatlan's Roberto Espinoza.  Sanchez has allowed just one earned run in 27 appearances for the Aguilas for an ERA of 0.31 (that is not a typo) and he has walked just five batters over 28.2 innings.  If Velazquez has a challenger for the LMP's best pitcher this season, Sanchez is the guy.

Puebla top Tijuana, 8-5, to take Serie del Rey lead

Pitcher Mauricio Lara (pictured) allowed one run on four hits over seven innings and Puebla batters bashed four homers as the Pericos held off a late Tijuana surge to post an 8-5 win over the Toros Saturday in Game Three of the Mexican League Championship Series. The Pericos took a 2-games-to-1 lead in the Serie del Rey as a crowd of 12,112 watched at Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan, marking the fifth consecutive playoff sellout in the colonial city.

Lara actually fell behind briefly in the top of the third inning, allowing one TJ run on back-to-back doubles by Isaac Rodriguez and Jose Guadalupe Chavez.  The Pericos came back with two of their own in the bottom of the frame, courtesy of solo homers off Toros starter Alex Sanabia by Daric Barton and Ruben Rivera, with Rivera's circuit clout to left putting the Pericos ahead for good.  Puebla rang up two more runs in the fourth (keyed by a Jose Rodriguez RBI double), two in the fifth on Rudy Amador's two-run single and one more tally in the sixth when Rodriguez socked a homer off reliever Manny Bareda.  Lara pitched a scoreless seventh before leaving the game with a 7-1 lead and a seeming lock for his third postseason triumph.

To their credit, Tijuana refused to lay down and die by ringing up four runs in the top of the eighth against Pericos relievers Jaime Lugo and Benny Suarez, three of them coming off a Dustin Martin homer to straightaway center field, his third bomb in as many Serie del Rey contests and fifth overall in the playoffs.  Suarez replaced Lugo after Martin's blast and, after getting one out, served up a solo shot to Carlos Valencia to narrow the Pericos' lead to two runs before recording the final two outs of the entrada.  

Puebla got one run back in the bottom of the eighth when Cesar Tapia went deep off Gerardo Sanchez (the Toros' sixth pitcher of the night) and it was left to Pericos closer Chad Gaudin to record a 1-2-3 ninth, getting Alex Romero swinging for the final out of the game and his sixth playoff save to seal the 8-5 win.

Rodriguez, Amador and Alberto Carreon each had two of Puebla's 11 hits while Martin contributed three hits for the Toros, who put 16 batters on base via hit, walk or error but were only 3-for-10 with runners in scoring position while hitting into five Puebla double plays.  With the win, Lara goes to 3-0 in the playoffs while the 37-year-old Hermosillo native lowered his postseason ERA to 1.32.  Sanabia suffered his first playoff loss for Tijuana, and it's a testament to how dominant he'd been in the first two rounds to note that even after coughing up five Pericos runs in 4.1 innings, his postseason ERA only went up to 1.96.

Game Four of the best-of-seven series is slated for Sunday afternoon in Puebla at 2:00pm Eastern Time.  Miguel Pena (0-1, 5.40) is the likely Tijuana starter while Hector Galvan (0-0, 9.64) is expected to throw the first pitch for Puebla. Galvan went 9-3 during the regular season for manager Cory Snyder's Pericos, but has only made one postseason appearance with a forgettable August 20 first-round start against Quintana Roo (his only outing in over a month).

PUEBLA 8-11-2, Tijuana 5-11-1 (Puebla leads series, 2 games to 1)
W-M. Lara. L-Sanabia. SV-Gaudin. HR-Valencia (T), D. Martin (T), R. Rivera (P), Barton (P), Tapia (P), J. Rodriguez (P). T-3:07. A-12,112.

Pericos outlast TJ, 6-3, title series tied at 1 game each

Dustin Martin hit his second homer in as many nights, a two-run shot that brought his Tijuana Toros to within a run of Puebla, but the Pericos added a pair of late runs and went on to beat the host team, 6-3, Thursday night to tie the Mexican League Championship Series at one game apiece.  An overflow crowd of 17,399 attended Game Two of the Serie el Rey at Tijuana's Estadio Gasmart.

Puebla got on the scoreboard in the top of the second inning when LMB batting champ Cesar Tapia, who's had a fairly quiet postseason, jolted a full-count delivery from Toros starter Barry Enright over the left field wall for a solo homer. The 1-0 score held until the top of the fourth, when the Pericos plated three runs. Daric Barton led the frame off with a triple, with Tapia singling him in. Subsequently, Alberto Carreon singled and Nyjer Morgan walked to load the bases with two out, bringing up Willy Taveras.  After Enright got him to whiff on the first pitch, Taveras lined the Pepperdine product's next offering to center field to bring in both Tapia and Carreon to make it a 4-0 lead for the Pericos.

Up to that point, Puebla starter Travis Blackley (pictured) was sailing along and the Aussie carried a one-hitter into the bottom of the fifth, when he walked Oscar Robles, wild-pitched Robles to second and then let up a run-scoring, ground-rule double to Carlos Valencia, who bounced a liner past Morgan and over the left field fence to ruin Blackley's shutout bid.  Things got a little warmer for Blackley and the Pericos in the sixth, when Martin followed up an Alex Romero single with his fourth homer of the playoffs to close the gap to 4-3.

That was as close as TJ would get, however, as Morgan singled in Tapia with a Puebla run in the top of the eighth off reliever Juan Sandoval and Barton touched Jason Urquidez with an RBI single in the ninth, driving in Jose Rodriguez with the final score of the game to clinch the win for the Parrots.  It was the first postseason run allowed by Urquidez in eight appearances after the Arizonan had saved 26 regular season games in 27 opportunities for the Toros.  The former Diamondbacks minor leaguer also pitched a scoreless inning for the victorious North in June's LMB All-Star Game at Estadio Monterrey.

Blackley got the win, allowing three runs over 5.2 innings on four hits and three walks, while Chad Gaudin picked up his fifth postseason save.  Enright took the loss, his second defeat in three playoff decisions, after giving up four runs on eight hits in 3.2 frames.  Tapia had three of Puebla's 13 hits, scoring three times and driving in two runs.  Tijuana collected just four hits on the night and now have just seven safeties over the first two games of the title tilt.

The two combatants will have the day off Friday before resuming the Serie el Rey with three games at Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan Saturday, Sunday and Monday.  Puebla is seeking its fifth Liga pennant since first fielding an LMB team in 1942 and their first since 1986.  Former big leaguer Cory Snyder has managed the Pericos since the All-Star Break, when the team shockingly fired Matias Carrillo even though the team had the best record in the league at the time.  Carrillo is now a member of the Toros coaching staff under skipper Pedro Mere, who himself assumed the reins July 4 after Luis Sojo was canned.  This is the first time Tijuana has played for a Mexican League title.

Puebla 6-13-0, TIJUANA 3-4-0 (Series tied at 1 game each)
W-Blackley. L-Enright. SV-Gaudin. HR-Martin (T). T-2:46. A-17,399.

Martin walkoff homer hands Tijuana win in Serie del Rey opener

Dustin Martin has hit 130 home runs over his eleven-year pro baseball career, but none of them may have been bigger than the one he hit to end Wednesday's Mexican League Championship Series Game One.

The 6'2" Texan was 0-for-3 when he led off the bottom of the ninth inning for Tijuana, who were deadlocked in a 0-0 tie with Puebla.  With the count at 1-1, Martin launched a Carlos Bustamante pitch over the wall in left-center field for a walkoff homer to hand the Toros a 1-0 win over the Pericos in front of 17,399 delirious spectators at Tijuana's Estadio Gasmart.

As befits the score, the game was a pitcher's duel between Puebla starter Orlando Lara and Tijuana's Horacio Ramirez for six innings before Ramirez was replaced by Gerardo Sanchez after the ex-MLBer held Puebla scoreless on four hits.  Lara, whose playoff ERA was lowered to 0.67, sparkled over eight innings and let up just two singles and walked five until Bustamante came on to pitch to Martin in the fateful ninth frame.  Juan Sandoval pitched the final two innings in relief to earn the win for the Toros.

It's already been quite a year for Martin, who began 2015 with Sugar Land of the independent Atlantic League before landing in Tijuana for the last month of the Liga season, hitting .375 with 7 homers for the Toros in 26 games.  He then played winterball with Obregon of the Mexican Pacific League, turning in a .301 average for the Yaquis and playing a key postseason role in their ascension to the LMP title series against eventual champion Mazatlan.

This summer went even better for the former Mets/Twins/D-backs farmhand as he reached career highs in several offensive categories, including batting (.325), homers (19), RBI's (88) and even stolen bases (32) during the regular season.  That production has carried over into the playoffs, where he's hitting .302 with three homers and several key hits, including a go-ahead longball in Monday's LMB North Championship-clinching game at Monterrey.  And now this.

The two teams will lock horns for Game Two at 7:35pm local time Thursday night in the border city before the Serie el Rey moves to Puebla for Game Three on Saturday.

TIJUANA 1-3-0, Puebla 0-5-0 (Tijuana leads series, 1 game to 0)
W-Sandoval. L-Bustamante. HR-Martin. T-2:46. A-17,399.

LMB Division Championships result, highlights for Monday, September 5

The home team won every game of the Mexican League's North Division Championship Series until the last one.

The Tijuana Toros put together a three-run sixth inning to break a 1-all tie and went on to win, 5-2, Monday night at Monterrey to take Game Seven and the LMB North crown to advance to the Serie del Rey against Puebla.  Tijuana had finished the regular season in third place in the division, eight-and-a-half games behind the Sultanes in the standings.  However, manager Pedro Mere (who replaced ex-Yankee Luis Sojo at the helm on July 4) led the Toros to series wins over higher seeds Monclova and Monterrey to give the border city a shot at its first Mexican League pennant.

Tijuana 5-13-0, MONTERREY 2-9-1 (Tijuana wins series, 4 games to 3)
W-A. Sanabia. L-C. Carrillo. SV-Urquidez. HR-Martin (T). T-3:05. A-25,621.
TJ starting pitcher Alex Sanabia (pictured) did his part by tossing six-and-two-thirds innings of one-run baseball, scattering six hits to raise his playoff record to 3-0.  The game got off to a perilous start for the one-time Marlins hurler, however, as he gave up an RBI double to Alex Valdez in the bottom of the first to put Monterrey on the scoreboard.  Sanabia had to pitch out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam that frame to stop the bleeding, then faced the minimum number of Sultanes batters the next five innings.
Tijuana tied it up in the top of the fourth when Carlos Valencia singled in Olmo Rosario, but it was the sixth when the roof finally fell in on Sultanes starter Cesar Carrillo.  Dustin Martin led off the entrada with a first-pitch homer to right to give the visitors a 2-1 lead. That was followed by a Rosario single, an RBI double by Oscar Robles and a single by Edson Garcia that drove in Robles from second to make it a 4-1 Tijuana lead.  Then Roberto Lopez homered in the top of the seventh to give Sanabia a four-run lead. The San Diego native combined with three relievers combined to limit the Sultanes to one eighth-inning score on Alex Valdez' RBI single to ice the win and send the Toros on to the LMB championship series against Puebla.

LMB Division Championships results, highlights from Friday, September 2

Pitching was the name of both games Friday night in Mexican League Division Championship Series Game Five action in Puebla and Tijuana.

Yoanner Negrin rebounded from a pair of substandard playoff starts to carry a shutout into the seventh inning as his Yucatan Leones completed their three-game road sweep in Puebla's Estadio Hermanos Serdan, beating the Pericos, 9-1, to overtake the series lead, 3 games to 2.  The visiting team has won all but one game in the South DCS.

Meanwhile, in the LMB North DCS, Tijuana's Barry Enright (pictured) was just a little better than Monterrey's Edgar Gonzalez as the Toros blanked the Sultanes, 2-0, Friday to take a 3-to-2 lead in that series.  Dustin Martin scored twice for Tijuana, contributing a fourth inning solo homer.  Unlike the other set, the home side has won every game in this series.

Saturday will be a travel day with action resuming Sunday night in Merida and Monterrey.

Yucatan 9-14-0, PUEBLA 1-8-3 (Puebla leads series, 3 games to 2)
W-Negrin. L-O.Lara. HR-Serrano (Y). T-3:01. A-12,112.
Yoanner Negrin pitched 6.2 innings of shutout ball, allowing five hits and striking out four to post his third playoff win Friday to raise his overall season record to 21-2 as Yucatan copped their second straight game in Puebla, 9-1.  Jose Aguilar went 3-for-4 for the Leones, scoring once and driving in another run, while Ricardo Serrano socked a two-run homer in the second off Puebla starter Orlando Lara for his third longball of the postseason. Ruben Rivera had a pair of hits for the Pericos, including an RBI single in the eighth to drive in Jose Rodriguez with Puebla's lone run.

TIJUANA 2-6-0, Monterrey 0-7-0 (Tijuana leads series, 3 games to 2)
W-Enright. L-Ed. Gonzalez. SV-Urquidez. HR-D. Martin (T). T-2:56. A-17,362.
Tijuana starter Barry Enright carried a shutout into the sixth inning and three relievers took it from there as the Toros held off Monterrey, 2-0, with 17,362 looking on at Estadio Gasmart.  Enright scattered five hits and struck out three batsmen for his first playoff win of 2016.  Dustin Martin had a hand in both TJ runs, scoring on an Oscar Robles sacrifice fly in the second frame and clouting a solo homer off Sultanes starter Edgar Gonzalez in the fourth.  Gonzales went seven innings and pitched well enough to win, but his teammates took the night off at the plate.

Saturday's Schedule
No games

Sunday's Schedule
Tijuana (M. Pena) at Monterrey (M. Tovar), 6:05pm EDT
Puebla (M. Lara) at Yucatan (T. Solis), 7:05pm EDT